Unlike last year, when slow starts could quickly morph into bad seasons during the 60-game pandemic-shortened 2020, not swinging the bat well through the first three weeks of the regular season is no reason to reach for the panic button.

Still, these five American League West players are hoping to get things going soon and put their early season struggles in the rearview mirror while they heat up with the spring temperatures:

Astros: Kyle Tucker
This was set to be a big year for Tucker, who had a breakout 2020. Still, he played in only 58 games in last year’s 60-game regular season, which meant '21, in essence, is set to be his first full season in the Majors. While he leads the team in home runs (four) and RBIs (11), Tucker’s production has been subpar. He’s slashing .169/.200/.400 through 17 games. That includes 1-for-21 in his last six games, but he had three of the five hardest-hit balls in Wednesday’s 6-3 loss at Colorado at 105.6 mph exit velocity, 103.2 mph and 102.4 mph -- all outs -- according to Statcast. Maybe that’s a sign that he’s about to break through. Tucker got off to a slow start last season, too, hitting .193/.227/.349 with two homers and 11 RBIs in his first 22 games before hitting .317/.387/.619 with seven homers and 31 RBIs in the final 36 games. -- Brian McTaggart

Angels: David Fletcher
Fletcher has been a sparkplug for the Angels the last few seasons, including a breakout year that saw him hit .319/.376/.425 in 49 games in 2020. He was rewarded with a five-year contract extension worth $26 million before the season, but is off to a slow start offensively, hitting just .242 in his first 15 games, through Tuesday. But Fletcher remains one of the better contact hitters in baseball and there's reason for optimism that the hits will start to come. He still rarely strikes out and his ability to put the ball in play should help him overcome his early struggles. Fletcher has a career batting average on balls in play of .317, but it's at .271 this year, indicating some bad luck. His line-drive rate is the highest of his career, which is also a good indicator that he's making good contact, but just hasn't had much to show for it. -- Rhett Bollinger

Athletics: Elvis Andrus
Andrus was acquired this offseason with big shoes to fill as the replacement to former MVP finalist Marcus Semien. It has been a slow start at the plate for the 32-year-old shortstop, but much of that low production has been the result of bad luck at the plate. Entering Wednesday, Andrus was hitting .136, which is well below his xBA of .214. Prior to his injury-riddled 2020 campaign, Andrus never hit lower than .256 in 11 Major League season. The A’s are banking on Andrus to finish closer to the numbers he’s averaged over his career by year’s end. Despite the offensive deficiencies, Andrus has still provided solid defense at the position and has shown his durability by starting in all 19 games for Oakland to begin the season. -- Martín Gallegos

Mariners: Tom Murphy
The Mariners have a throng of key contributors that are off to slow starts, and each of them present question marks, most notably Murphy, who entered Thursday hitting .125/.176/.219 and has slowly lost playing time to Luis Torrens. After leading the Mariners with 3.4 wins above replacement in 2019, per FanGraphs, Murphy missed all of '20 with a broken bone in his left foot, so there was always going to be the question if he could quickly regain his timing. But his splits against righties -- a .243 OPS against a .647 OPS against lefties -- are concerning. Murphy still is an elite power threat and is widely touted as the strongest player on the team. But the Mariners could sure benefit from him regaining some of his past form. -- Daniel Kramer

Rangers: Isiah Kiner-Falefa
The Rangers shortstop led the club with a .280 batting average in 2020, but hasn't hit his stride yet this season. In the leadoff spot in all 18 games so far, he's slashed just .213/.253/.347 with a .600 OPS. Manager Chris Woodward said the coaching staff isn't too worried about Kiner-Falefa as they get deeper into the season. He's been hitting the ball hard, but often it's been right at people. There's reason to believe he'll break through at some point in the near future to go on a run. He actually broke an 0-for-19 skid against the Angels with a triple and a single. Kiner-Falefa is one of the Rangers' most disciplined hitters, so it's only a matter of time. -- Kennedi Landry